Rand Paul calls out the government’s “wasteful spending” (video)

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) called out runaway federal spending days after he forced a short-lived government shutdown with a lengthy floor speech denouncing the budget deficit.

Speaking to radio host John Catsimatidis on New York radio station AM 970, Paul took aim at what he called “wasteful spending.”

Paul cited examples such as, “We spent $700,000 last year studying what Neil Armstrong said when he landed on the moon.”

“Remember, he said ‘one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.’ Well, some idiot in government took $700,000 of taxpayer money and wanted to know whether he said ‘one small step for man’ or ‘one small step for a man.’ So that’s the kind of stuff your government is spending money on,” Paul revealed.

The lawmaker also told Catsimatidis that he has been pushing for the Defense Department to be audited.

“Before we give them more money, make them account for the money they’re already spending,” he said.

Paul has long been considered one of the Senate’s fiercest budget hawks, and has turned his ire against his own party, at times, accusing Republicans of denouncing deficits under Democratic presidential administrations while embracing high spending under President Trump.

Paul forced a brief government shutdown early Friday morning, after he delayed a vote on a sweeping spending bill with a lengthy speech on the Senate floor. That bill, which included increases in both domestic and military spending, eventually passed hours later and was signed by Trump, ending the shutdown.